LUDACRIS DOES A MOZZER

Tricky blighter, johnny flag. A chap pulls one round his shoulders, all of a sudden the chap is the centre of a firestorm as a result. Ludacris is putting a brave face on the anger that greeted his waving of a confederate flag during the Vibe awards. (For an event which everyone said passed without incident, it seems to have been quite incident-packed.) Ludacris is now claiming that, yes, his idea was to get people talking:

"This flag represents the oppression that we as African Americans have endured for years; this is a symbol of segregation and the racism that reigned not only throughout the South but throughout the entire United States," said Ludacris in a statement. "I wore it to represent where we came from, to remind people that Ray Charles' original 'Georgia' was written because of that racism."

Luda pointed out that he later discarded the flag, stomped on it, and brought a different flag bearing the traditional African colors—red, black, and green.

"It is a representation and my interpretation of where we were and where we need to go. Racism is just as prevalent now and if we are not constantly mindful of our history and take charge of it, history is destined to repeat itself because of ignorance.

"In order to move forward, we must never forget where we were," Luda continued. "I hope people continue to question and challenge authority, media and themselves because questioning and challenging can only lead to enlightenment."

He does seem to have thought this through more than, say, Marilyn Manson does his shock tactics.

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